Friday, August 28, 2015

Saying Goodbye to South Beach

Construction and the stench.Sulfur everywhere on South Beach. Turned down one street and it was blocked:an enormous pump drilled through the asphalt,pulling up dark water next to Whole Foods. South Beach -and Miami Beach- is being swallowed.The swampy perfume of rotting limestone as the sea rises up through the ground. Barricades around enormous pumps screaming full force into the night as they fight the Atlantic. Floods on dry days and the soaked earth below the surfacecracking the roads open, a pustulating omen. Yuppies are still running into Whole Foods, swerving their luxury sedans around the signs of demise,holding their nose against the hell rot of sulfurrushing to get their $20 kale shampootheir vegan cold-pressed virginal quinoa hemp yogurt. Conspicuous consumption right up until the apocalypse. The 'boiling lobster' affect, dying by degrees. And now a hurricane creeps toward muddy ruins.